Short Take: The Wizard of Oz

The 1939 screen version of The Wizard of Oz is the greatest children's film, the greatest fantasy film, and perhaps the greatest movie musical of all. The story follows the general outline of L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel. Dorothy (Judy Garland), a Kansas farm girl, is whisked by a cyclone with her dog Toto to the magical land of Oz. To return home, she must petition the Wizard (Frank Morgan), who rules the far-off Emerald City. The journey requires traveling the Yellow Brick Road, and staying out of the clutches of the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton). Along the way, Dorothy makes three friends--the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), the Tin Man (Jack Haley), and the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr)--who accompany her. The picture is imaginatively realized and beautifully crafted, but what sets it apart from other films is the deeper chord of happiness it strikes. The story is guided by a simple, profound view of friendship: faith in people despite their flaws; the commitment to keeping those flaws from getting the better of them; and the selfless resolve to help them achieve their goals. The film celebrates friendship in these terms with an unrivaled joy. One never tires of watching it no matter how many times one's seen it, and thinking back on it always brings a smile. Among the many highlights: Judy Garland's sweetly assertive performance as Dorothy; the beautiful yearning in her rendition of "Over the Rainbow"; the gorgeous Munchkinland set; the infectious high spirits of "We're Off to See the Wizard" and other songs; Bobby Connolly's astonishing choreography of the extended "Ding! Dong! The Witch Is Dead" production number; Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, and Bert Lahr's vaudeville-style comedy turns as Dorothy's companions; Margaret Hamilton's comic (and frightening) Wicked Witch; Harold Rosson's cinematography, which is gorgeous in both the color scenes and those in sepia-toned black-and-white. Every aspect of the film is irresistible. The songs are by Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg. Malcolm Brown, William A. Horning, and Jack Martin Smith provided the outstanding production design, with art direction by Cedric Gibbons. The incidental score is by Herbert Rothart. To the extent any person deserves sole credit for the film, it is producer Mervyn LeRoy, who brought it all together. There were several directors. Victor Fleming, who has sole screen credit, shot most of the Oz sections, although the musical numbers were staged by Bobby Connolly. King Vidor directed the Kansas scenes. But there was also substantial development work by Norman Taurog, Richard Thorpe, and George Cukor, and LeRoy directed the reshoots. No less than 15 writers worked on the screenplay, which was credited to Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, and (the curiously named) Edgar Allan Woolf.